A fireplace is the attention-grabber in any room, so the wall encircling it will become a focal point too. Painting that wall needs a hard look at the style of the firebox, mantel and hearth. A contemporary fireplace bears very little similarity to a carved conventional frame of moldings and columns. A stone chimney breast and surround is quite a far cry from classic brick. Play the fireplace off therapy to decorate the rest of the room.
Make it Disappear
A fireplace that’s too prominent in a little room, or even an older fireplace frame in poor condition benefits from an all-white, same-shade paint job. Use the specific same colour for wall, mantel and surround, choosing from warm or cool whites after determining which is cleanest and nearest to pure white at the light of that space. Vary the end to underline the mantel or particulars of this fireplace surround — glossy white on a carved wood framework against matte paint on the walls attracts delicate attention to the decorative flourish. “Painting outside” the wall with white-on-white is a minimalist treatment that allows you go modern for the remaining part of the decor. The cloud-like expanse of wall and firebox surround erases any flaws in a less-than-perfect surround and mantel, and works with a Romantic or Shabby Chic-style decor too.
Complement Rugged Stone
A stone fireplace is hardy and elemental and overpowers the rest of the room if it’s not handled strategically. The surrounding wall may be pretty thin real estate once the stone goes wide beyond the sides of the firebox and also to the ceiling. Stone colors and shapes are additional considerations. Your aim is to incorporate and complement the stunning decorative feature so that it won’t stick out like a sore thumb. In most cases, this means avoiding a strong and vibrant color for your wall. A field-stone fireplace, with its mottled grays or tans and chunky surface, is tamed with a softer shade pulled in the stone. Try dove gray or matte maize paint to get a hint of color that won’t compete. Limestone is so mild that the hints of yellow or blush are flattered with a creamy white, pale whipped-butter or merest hint of apricot paint.
Improve Conspicuous Brick
Brick might be really red or worn, faded and full of personality. If it surrounds your fireplace, your choices are to paint it outside or enhance its appeal together with the wall color. White wall paint is a default, but it doesn’t have any nuance or subtlety for a background for brick. Consider a versatile neutral like gray. A whisper of light gray gleams alongside classic brick, allowing the variegated clay to show off its colours and softened shapes. Bolder pewter or charcoal modernizes that conventional brick fireplace so that it fits into a contemporary room. Delicate and dusky greens — complements of brick reds — are quiet enough to prevent clashing. A mild sage or pastel mint-green wall about a brick fireplace is tactfully dynamic but not assertive.
Highlight Magisterial Marble
Marble can not be painted over or ignored; a marble fireplace dominates a wall or the whole room. Pick a color in the veining and matching it with wall paint to revel in the richness. Very delicate or neutral colors push on the marble fireplace to the spotlight. A more powerful blue, purple, cinnamon or jade sets up a yin-yang stress that slightly subdues the fireplace to balance the space. In a cozy or formal room, a strong gem-like wall paint at a deeper shade of a vein color — sapphire, ruby, green tourmaline or imperial purple — tends to close the room in about itself also works well with heavier or aggressively modern furniture. Pale walls surrounding a marble fireplace offer more of a backdrop to spare contemporary decor, fragile antiques or romantic furnishings and fabrics.